Ultimatum
by anime-dark-fairy
Summary: Well, i wrote this for English but my friend got me to put it up :  Kira has known that he was the Ultimate Coordinator but never saw fit to tell anyone; but when a threat lurks he soon has no choice. M for later chapters
1. Chapter 1

**OK well I had to do a creative writing thing at school ,so I chose to write about Gundam seed :) My friend convinced me to post this, this first one is only short though. I hope you like**

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><p>"We do not act rightly because we have virtue of excellence,<p>

_**But we rather have those because we have acted rightly."**_

_(-Aristotle 384 B.C., Greek philosopher and scientist, student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the great.)_

_**Prologue**_

The Bloody Valentine War. In year 70 of the Cosmic Era this horrific war began. Why? Because of jealously and resentment, because of greed and war mongering. People had always assumed that the numerically superior Earth Alliance forces would prove to be victorious in the early stages of the war, but they were wrong. The Coordinators (people genetically enhanced before birth) refused to admit defeat and fade; they fought back. In an attempt to finish or at very least force the Coordinators into submission, the Earth Alliance used nuclear weapons to destroy one of the PLANTs -the orbital structures that Coordinators came to call a home. Thousands of innocent people died that day. The war took a turn for the worst; in retaliation the Coordinators military, ZAFT, ejected neutron-jammer devices deep into the Earth's crust, affecting the nature of the world and beginning an energy crisis. From there the war dragged on, millions more fighting and dying for what they personally believed. The beliefs ranging from simple survival, protection, to avenging the death of loved ones. ZAFT had a rather big advantage in the form of android fighting suits -large metal machines in which a pilot could sit quite safely inside the chest- were used to counter the Earth's ships. These became known as Mobile Suits, and soon enough certain sectors and organizations on or from Earth began making their own prototypes of these deadly machines. Others just wanting to get away from the war inhabited the land or space colonies provided by the Orb nation, a _very_ neutral nation who was adamant to remain neutral. That is where I lived; a space colony called Heliopolis. I studied at a technical college and helped out at the Morgenrote research facility. I am Kira Yamato, and I am a Coordinator.

I was dragged into the war, and forced to fight if I wanted my friends to survive. ZAFT forces attacked the colony in search of the Mobile Suits that Orb had been secretly constructing and after trying to help a young woman we stumbled across the last two remaining machines. The woman ended up safe in an escape pod but with no room left I had to go elsewhere. Needless to say I ended up in one of the Mobile Suits with a wounded officer. In the ensuing battle I took over the machine and re-wrote the programming –one of the hardest computer exploits I had ever done. To survive, my friends and I ended up on board the Archangel; Orbs newest and finest battle cruiser. There we meet Murrue Ramius and Mwu La Flaga, who both became very close friends to us and helped us through our hardships.

And so I became a reluctant participant in the war. At first to was just to save my friends and get to the Earth Alliance base in Alaska on Earth but throughout the journey I changed. I was no longer the naïve boy I had been. I had killed people. And somehow I survived the constant pursuit put forth by ZAFT, and somehow I managed to hold my own against trained pilots. My Mobile suit -or Gundam as I came to call it- was known the GAT-X105 Strike.

Soon I realized that I had the power to help not just my friends but everyone. But I was subsequently beaten, beaten by an old friend nonetheless. Although I survived I had lost that power to help and my friends were in danger. Along the way I meet Lacus Clyne, a songstress Coordinator and the daughter of the late Siegel Clyne -the former Supreme Council Chairman- who helped me out after I was beaten and badly hurt. I can never be sure what she saw in me but she must have seen something good because through a bizarre series of events I soon acquired the ZGMF-X10A Freedom. A much more powerful Gundam. With it I went to help my friends and with a new set of mind I also went to end the war.

Then the end of the war drew near, and I was now a key participant and with help gained along the way we were able to end the war and make people see that a peaceful option _was_ available, that we didn't need to fight. After all; if someone is killed for killing, then the cycle would never end.

A shaky peace treaty was formed and by the end of year 71 CE (Cosmic Era) the ZAFT and Earth Alliance forces viewed each other on mutual ground.

Many things happened to me throughout that war; I fought my childhood friend Athrun Zala, who thankfully is no longer an enemy but once again a very close friend and ally. I found out that I had a twin; Cagalli Yula Athha, who also happened to be the woman that I helped to escape in Heliopolis. I fought with rebel factions in the desert, sparred under the sea, and somehow managed to kill Rau Le Creuset; the man that was, for all intents and purposes, controlling the war. I also found out that I was meant to be the Ultimate Coordinator; someone conceived in the womb but born from a machine.

Peace may have been found, but not for me. The faces of those who I saw killed and who I killed still haunted me, the voices of those crying out in the seconds before death still rang in my ears as though someone had recorded all of my communications and put them on repeat. I now lived near the Orb capital on Earth, but my life would never be the same. I believe I was never meant to be confronted with the innards of war, but I was thrust in by destiny and somehow survived. But the next hurdle in my life was just to begin...

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><p><strong>As I am sure you can tell, this is more of a summary than the actual story. <strong>

**Please review and tell me what you think :)**


	2. A Threat

**Chapter 2...**

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 1: A Threat<strong>

_Peace… There are two definitions; 1. A condition in which there is no war, violence, or disorder. 2. Quietness… calm. But peace seems subjective to me now, although all that is around me seems peaceful and calm there is always a threat lurking out there. People who would fight against peaceful life that the majority of people would thrive upon. People who enjoy the notions of making others suffer. People who want to play god… _Since the war ended, people have enjoyed a small time of peace, but memories cannot be erased, and the pain is still fresh. We all fought in the war, we all survived, and we all now deal with the pain that comes from seeing that kind of death and destruction. Why is it that the good, cherished memories we want to remember fade, and the horrid ones that we want to forget remain as clear as glass?

"Kira?" I was dragged from my musings by the tentative voice of Athrun; my childhood friend and short time enemy through the war. Turning to look upon his face I couldn't stop the brief flashback, the way his face was twisted in pain and anger… all directed at me as we fought to kill each other. All for revenge for our respective friends that fell beneath the others onslaught.

"Yeah?" I answered, forcing the unpleasant memories back and focusing on the good memories; such as our time as kids playing happily together and being totally naïve about the world.

"It's time to go; we need to get back to the house before dark." Athrun explained. I focused on the setting sun and saw that he was correct. We had come into town to get supplies for the house, and had decided to stop at the grave memorial for those who had died in the various fights.

I nodded to Athrun and followed silently to the car.

Once home we went about our tasks of unloading while talking quietly about small things that came to mind. Afterwards we sat at the table in silence for a while, both deep in thought.

We looked up at the sound of the front door closing and I noticed Athrun tense up on instinct, but soon the telltale footsteps of Andrew Waltfeld sounded down the small hall and he relaxed. I looked over at Athrun and caught the end of a silent sigh,

"Will I ever find it Kira?" he asked out of the blue. I already knew what he was talking about so I didn't need to ask.

"I don't know for sure, but we will try." I said.

"How did you find the answer?" He asked. The answer of which he spoke was what I fought for, what I used to determine if my actions were the right ones. The decision that meant I wouldn't do anything just because I was told. It hadn't been an instantaneous finding though; there were so many things that had led to it. When Athrun and I had first spoken after I came back with the Freedom, I had asked him what he was fighting for, and found that he wasn't very sure. So now we searched for the answer for him, together.

"It's… hard to explain. It was slow, for so long it just edged on my mind but I couldn't grasp it. Then slowly I did begin to get it, one small bit at a time until it was complete." I explained hesitantly, it was hard to talk of anything that related to the war. Athrun seemed thoughtful of this and soon we lapsed into silence again.

"Thank you." The two small words from Athrun surprised and confused me.

"What for?" I questioned.

"Everything; it's scary to think of where I might be now if not for you."

"It wasn't me Athrun, I just asked the question. You chose to pursue the answer."

"I know but-"

Whatever he had been about to say was interrupted by the door to the kitchen opening abruptly. We turned to see Andrew in the door way, looking unusually flustered. We both picked up on the mood and stood from the table.

"Andrew? What's wrong?" I asked, working to keep the sudden uneasiness out of my voice.

"I just got a call from Cagalli, some things happened and she needs you there. Now." He replied, his deep voice taking on the military tone he had once used. I stole a quick glance at the clock; it was nearly 10pm.

"I'm on my way." I said headed immediately for the door.

The cold night air nipped at my bare arms as I hurried to the car, I had left my jacket inside but I felt that I didn't have the time to get it. If Cagalli needed me this late then it was _very_ important.

I had just reversed the car around to face the road when Athrun's voice reached my ears,

"Kira! Wait!" I halted the car and turned to see him descending the steps from the front door, two small bundles visible in his arms. He ran around the car and leapt into the car with amazing agility. The car we owned had no roof, and was flame red. I had never been sure why Athrun had wanted it but in the end he won out and we got it. But right now it was fast, and that was what I needed.

"Here, you forgot this." He stated handing me my jacket.

"Thanks."

I paused only long enough to slide into my jacket before we were speeding down the road towards Orb capital.

Cagalli Yula Athha, my twin sister and the leader of the Orb government. She had hefty responsibilities for someone her age, but the man she had regarded as her father had believed in her, otherwise he would not have left Orb to her. We reached the edge of the city within 20 minutes and soon we were twisting through the now familiar streets towards the mansion she inherited.

When we arrived we were both out of the car quickly and headed for the front door at a brisk pace. I raised my hand to knock when the door was opened and one of the young staff stood there.

"Mr. Yamato, thank you for coming. Lady Cagalli is in the upstairs study." She said in a pleasant voice. She would have been no more than 15, only four years younger than myself, but her cyan eyes suggested that she had seen her share of war as well.

I nodded to her and moved past her with Athrun close in tow. As we ascended the stairs I studied the area around me, I hadn't been here many times and those had been close after the war so I was quite preoccupied. The walls were a simple but elegant peach and cream colour and the cornices were engraved with a long, simple pattern.

As we moved through the house the house to the study I found myself growing more and more anxious. I couldn't place why I had the feeling but I did, and from past experience I had learned to be cautious with these feelings.

We reached the study and I looked at Athrun, he gave me a nod of encouragement and a faint smile. With that I knocked softly on the door and waited. A second later Cagalli's voice could be heard,

"Come in."

We entered. Cagalli was sitting on a large sofa faced away from the door, looking out the window on the far side of the room. The room –true to its name- had book cases lining the wall, filled with various books. There were several desks in the room as well as a good number of the sofas like Cagalli was seated.

I moved to stand behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder; she was shaking.

"Cagalli… What happened?" I spoke softly, so as not to alarm her.

She quietly passed me a small sheet of paper, I took it from her hesitantly. Cagalli had seen a lot and been through a lot, it was quite unnerving to see her this way.

I stole a quick glance at Athrun; he was scanning the room as if a threat lurked behind every object. With a soft sigh I opened the paper, the knot in my stomach slowly increasing the whole time I read;

_Cagalli Yula Athha._

_We have in our custody the five recently orphaned children. Our demands are simple, however if they are not met within a week the consequences will be severe. We will contact you later tonight with the conditions of their release._

The note consisted of tiny letters that had been cut out of a book or magazine. It seemed quite old fashioned in this day and age but it was effective nonetheless; it gave no clue as to who wrote and sent it. It caused my blood to run cold. Those children had all lost their parents in a recent shuttle crash, Cagalli had made sure all of them had a place to stay and food to eat. She had spent a lot of time with them and had become quite fond of them; and that explained her reaction to the note.

I handed the note out to Athrun to read; he had much more experience in these matters. He came over silently and took the note and read over it. His face had already been hard with the tension in the room, but now his features radiated anger.

I moved around the sofa to sit next to Cagalli and drew her into an embrace, not long after I felt her shoulders shudder with the quiet tears that fell. Athrun began pacing the room soon enough but soon settled for looking out the window.

"Cagalli." I said, gently grasping her shoulders and pulling away to look at her face. She looked haggard and tired. "When did you get this?"

"It was here when I got home today..." She said forlornly. She looked away, focusing on the floor instead of me. Cagalli always hated to cry, especially in front of others.

"Did you or the staff see anyone strange around here?" Athrun piped in.

"No, I asked all the staff soon after I found the note." She replied.

"How do you think they will try to contact Cagalli?" I asked, focusing my question to Athrun.

"I'm not sure..." He admitted.

With that we lapsed into silence for a while, after a while Cagalli stopped crying and simply sat there. Athrun would sporadically pace the room, but he would always return to the window to survey the dark grounds beyond.

I found it hard to sit there doing nothing and eventually decided to go and see if I could find out anything from the staff that was still working.

"I'll be back soon." I explained to Athrun and Cagalli as I stood up. Cagalli just sat there and Athrun gave a small nod of acknowledgement.

The halls were eerily silent as I walked through them. The house was huge and I ended up heading for the back of the house, hoping that would be where the staff would be.

I figured that someone would be in the kitchen but when I arrived, the room was empty. I sighed as I looked around the quiet room. Cagalli was suppose to have staff 24 hours a day, so the fact that I couldn't find them was starting to tug at my worries. I began wandering around the house again, looking onto various rooms and occasionally calling out but receiving no answer. I was ready to give up when I heard footsteps behind me. Acting on feeling I kept walking as though I hadn't noticed anything, I kept walking and turned the corner into the next hall.

I quickly crouched and waited, surely enough someone rounded the corner soon after me. He was obviously male, but he wore loose, over-large clothing and had a mask on his face. I stood and faced him.

"Who are you?" I demanded getting huffed at in reply.

"That does not matter. Where is Cagalli Yula Athha?" His voice was deep and menacing, but I gave none of my feeling away; keeping my face blank.

"If you want to see Cagalli, you tell me who you are." I replied curtly, portraying a confidence I didn't really feel. The man was buff and a lot larger than me; he gave off the very air of calm and confident. He seemed to take the time to study me now, and I'm not sure what he saw but when he replied this time he was more polite, but the threat still lingered,

"I am a _contact_ and I _should_ be expected."

"Wait here." I said. We now stood outside the study, but I was not about to just let this guy waltz into the room, possibly putting Cagalli and Athrun in danger.

"Whatever." He replied nonchalantly.

I opened the door just enough for me to slide through and closed the door quickly behind me. Cagalli still sat on the sofa, practically the same way as when I left. Athrun turned to face me as I came in and instantly picked up on my behaviour.

"What happened?" He asked standing up. At the strange question Cagalli also turned to look at me.

"We have a... Guest." I explained.

I had thought Athrun looked alert before, but now I wasn't so sure; I had forgotten just how hard Athrun's usually soft eyes could turn at the presence of a threat.

"Who?" he demanded, voice hard. I stole a look at Cagalli before speaking.

"Apparently... He is the contact we have been waiting for."

"Any name?"

"No, not that I could get out of him anyway." I said.

"Let him in..." We both turned to Cagalli at the sound of her soft voice. She was looking out the window with a rather faraway look to her eyes.

"But-" Athrun objected.

"If it means those kids will be safe, then I don't care about anything else."

It looked as though Athrun was about to object again, but I knew Cagalli was right so I spoke up to back her up.

"Athrun, we will both be in here the whole time. And Cagalli is right, we cant risk those kids." Athrun opened his mouth again, but then promptly closed it, admitting that there was nothing else he could do to change our minds.

I turned and opened the door, he man was leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the hall, once again displaying an eerie confidence. He looked up when I opened the door, then stood up straighter.

I opted not to say anything, instead deciding to simply open the door wide and move aside. He took the hint and moved in, with me closing the door after him.

Athrun was back at his position near the window, but now his attention was focused inside, I just stood by the door, ready to stop him if needed. Cagalli stood from where she had been sitting and offered the man her hand in greeting.

The man ignored the offered hand and sprawled himself on the sofa. Cagalli stood there for a moment longer before pulling up a seat opposite him.

"So..." Cagalli began, plainly nervous in the man's company.

"The Ultimate Coordinator." The man stated. My blood froze.

"Wh-What?" Cagalli asked, unfamiliar with the term.

"That is our one and only demand; we want the Ultimate Coordinator."

My mind spun, I had never told anyone about what I had found out from Rau Le Creuset during the war, the only other person who had known was Mwu La Flaga. And he was gone.

"I... I don't understand." Cagalli seemed lost.

"You need to find out who the Ultimate Coordinator is, catch him or her, and bring 'em to us. In exchange the kids will be given to you. You have one week before we start cutting the kids up and sending them back in pieces."

"But... How... How will I find them?"

The man laughed at her question, but the laugh was not a pleasant one; it was deep and guttural, causing an unpleasant shiver to run down my spine.

"That is for you to find out girly." He said, "Nice doing business with you."

The man stood and I noticed Athrun take a cautionary step forward, the man looked over at him and laughed again. He spun around and headed towards me, or more accurately the door behind me. I froze up for a moment but managed to recover quickly and step aside. The man stopped before leaving and looked at me. I felt too exposed under the stare but I stood my ground and didn't show intimidation. Then he was gone, and we were all frozen to the spot; each with our respective thoughts. Quite suddenly I felt dizzy, and leaned on the wall for support.

"Kira? Are you ok?" Athrun's voice seemed distant. A part of me wondered why I was feeling like this; it wasn't like it was the first time I had faced someone who knew about me. But then again, they weren't holding five innocent kids hostage to get me.

I needed time to think, the room seemed to constricting right now. So I done the only thing I could have then, I ran from the room, ignoring Athrun's shouts behind me.

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><p><strong>Well, getting straight into it I guess, hope you liked it :)<strong>


	3. Confiding in Friends

**Straight into it then :)**

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><p><strong><span>Chapter 2: Confiding in Friends<span>**

The cool night air was calming as I walked the grounds, but it wasn't quite calming enough; my mind was still whirling with questions and worries. None of which I could allay.

I was glad that the grounds here were large, because I was sure that Athrun would come looking for me after my exit. Reflecting on everything I now wished that I had kept my head clear until I could find a viable excuse for leaving.

I eventually made my way down to a small pond and sat on the bank. I had some large decisions to make, and make quickly. I had no qualms with risking my life for the kids, or even sacrificing it. But I knew that Athrun would wholly object, and I could hardly leave without telling him.

Athrun had come to mean so much to me, especially in the last few months; he was always the first one by my side after a particularly bad nightmare, always there to help bring me back to reality. And I done the same for him, although on a smaller scale.

"Kira?" The voice cut through the darkness softly, and only then was I aware of the footsteps coming my way. I didn't reply, just sat there and stared out at the water, softly rippling because of the night breeze. A few seconds later Athrun sat down beside me and looked out towards the pond as well.

"I know this isn't easy, but we won't lose those kids." He said after a while of silence.

I looked over at him and silently thanked him; he was attempting to draw me out and cheer me up. As always.

"I know." I replied softly. "I never had any doubts."

"What's wrong Kira?" Once again I left the question hanging. It was a strange feeling; not being able to talk freely to the person I told everything else to.

"What do you know about the Ultimate Coordinator Project?" I blurted.

Athrun gave me a strange, measured look before answering,

"Well... The usual I guess. The idea was to create a Coordinator that was even more advanced than normal. But the mothers' genes were in the way, and always interfered with the end result. So as far as I know someone came up with the idea of implanting the unborn child into a machine able to sustain the life needed until birth... But as far as I ever knew it never happened."

I was surprised that Athrun knew that much, it was considered top secret apparently. I stood up, earning another curious glance.

"Come on... I need to talk to you and Cagalli." I said, giving him a hand up...

A while later we all sat in the study once more. Cagalli seemed absolutely clueless as to what was going on and kept glancing uncertainly between Athrun and I. Athrun on the other hand was watching me intently, I guessed that he was starting to get an idea of what I was going to tell them.

"Athrun, can you please tell Cagalli what you know of the Ultimate Coordinator project?" I asked, giving myself time to think and arrange my thoughts as he spoke. Cagalli listened intently, now aware that this had something to do with the kidnapping. When Athrun had finished speaking, he turned to look at me once more and this time Cagalli did the same.

"What do you think about that?" I asked, directing the question at Cagalli.

"Well... It sounds all well and good in thought, but surely it can't be done. That sort of thing is, well... Crazy." She answered openly.

"Not really," Athrun put in, "If someone was able to make a fluid with the right nutrients and growth supplements, then it would be very possible. The problem would be the 'birth', if you call it that." I nodded over both of their compliments and waited while Cagalli seemed to be deep in thought.

Apparently Athrun wasn't as willing to wait.

"What's your point Kira?" He questioned.

"Did you know that hundreds, maybe thousands of unborn kids died trying to bring that to reality." I stated, both ignoring the question and dropping another bomb shell on them.

"W-What?" Cagalli stammered, "You mean they actually tried to do it?"

I nodded, waiting for it to sink in.

"How would you know that?" Athrun asked, now with a slightly suspicious tone to his voice.

Athrun was always quick to pick up on the smallest hints and make quite accurate assumptions from them.

"Yes." I said answering Cagalli.

"Kira, answer me." Athrun said sternly after a few moments of silence had passed as I attempted to once again arrange my thoughts.

"It's not that simple Athrun." I stalled, "But to cut right to the chase; I know because I was the only survivor of that madness."

Once again I waited for it to sink in, and seemed to find something very interesting on the floor to look at. As I expected Athrun got it first;

"No..." He said, I knew he wasn't just thinking of the revelation but of what it meant in our current situation.

"Wait, what?" Cagalli asked confusion upon her features again. I didn't answer, in that moment I couldn't.

"It means..." Athrun said slowly, "That Kira is the Ultimate Coordinator. And the only survivor of the project." The words were blunt, as if the truth couldn't be real for him

"But how... Aren't we twins?" She demanded shocked.

"Yes." I answered, finding my voice. "But I was taken from the womb before birth. Just as Athrun said."

"But... Why?"

"I don't know... All I know is from the small hints and pieces of information that I found."

"How long?" Athrun's voice was sharp, he was looking at the ground; successfully hiding his face. I knew he was angry then. Conflicted.

"Since that fight with Rau Le Creuset on the remains of the Mendel colony." I answered honestly.

Athrun looked up in surprise and I could almost feel the intensity of his stare.

"That long? And you didn't tell anyone?"

"Mwu." I said sadly.

"What?"

"Mwu knew... He was there."

Silence fell as we remembered the blond pilot. He had become close friends with all of us.

"And Le Creuset told you this?" Athrun asked skeptically.

"Yes. But we were in the old genetic engineering lab itself, and... There were photos Athrun, the same photo Uzumi gave Cagalli and more." The photo that Uzumi, the man Cagalli called Father, had shown a lady with two small babies being held in her arms; on the back was written _Kira and Cagalli_. That had been the first thing that suggested our connection.

Once again silence fell thick around us as we all thought about the meanings of what I had revealed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Athrun asked softly breaking the silence.

"I didn't think I needed to... It had caused enough trouble with Le Creuset. And I was scared of what it meant." I admitted.

"But what will we do?" Cagalli interrupted, stopping any further speculation on the subject. Athrun turned thoughtful, but I knew there was only one way.

"We do what they want." I said, "The kids are too important to risk."

"No." They both chorused. It was impulsive, but I could understand why; I would do the same if it was them.

"It doesn't matter what we feel." I pressed, "Those kids have already lost too much, and they don't need to lose their lives for me."

A small part of me found it strange talking about it so casually. For all I knew these people only wanted me dead.

"What about what you have lost?" Athrun demanded, his voice heated once again.

"That doesn't matter." I countered.

"It matters to me!" He yelled. "I almost lost you once, but not again."

"Athrun. We have no choice…"

"Then we will just have to find them and get them first." Athrun persisted.

I sighed, knowing I wouldn't get anywhere.

"Yeah." Cagalli put in optimistically, "We will use the one week time limit to find them first, and stop them from hurting the children."

"And if you don't find them?" I questioned flatly.

"Then..." She couldn't finish, even Athrun didn't have an argument to that. I sighed again and leaned back into the sofa. It was _really_ strange pushing for what could be my own death sentence...

"Fine then..." I sighed in defeat...

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><p><strong>Hope it wasn't to bad...<strong>


	4. Searching

**Enjoy!**

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 3: Searching<strong>

_Athrun Zala POV_

I sat at a café table near the ocean, looking and feeling rather dejected. It has been three days since Cagalli had called us to her home because of the threat to five young kids. Now Kira was in trouble and there was nothing I could do; I had exhausted every possible option I could come up with and had gotten nothing in return.

To say I had been shocked when Kira spoke up would be quite an understatement. It also scared me. Kira had always been special; advanced in many things. But he was also the kindest person I knew, completely opposing the idea of the Ultimate Coordinator that many people had; that the Ultimate Coordinator would be the one to decide the fate of the world and rule it unopposed.

In a way I suppose he did, but without the ruling bit; he sacrificed everything to bring a peace that meant people could have their own life and _not_ be controlled.

And now he was willing to do it again. But at the ultimate price.

Making him stay indoors and out of danger for the week long period had been a hard argument, but I knew that if I pushed enough he would submit. So now he was home, and I was out here; searching in vain to find an answer to our problems.

I had come to love Kira, strange as it was. He was all that I had left to fight for, or even die for. And now, once again he was slipping from my grasp.

With a sigh I stood, leaving a small amount of money as a tip to the waitress who had served me, I left.

The sun that had shone brightly earlier was slowly disappearing behind a thick band of dark clouds, now threatening to let loose and rain, I made my way towards my car.

"What will I do?" I murmured to myself, willing an idea to come to mind.

Not long after I made it to the car the first heavy drops of rain began to fall and the last rays of sun faltered leaving the area in shadow.

In the car I sighed heavily again; wishing once again that a bright idea would burst forth into my mind. I felt lost. I started the car and deciding that I wanted company I began heading homeward.

As I drove my thoughts turned to the previous war and my involvement. At first it had seemed like the right thing to do; to join the military and fight to stop further events like the Bloody Valentine destruction. Stop more people from dying. Like my mum.

But everything we had been fighting for had been challenged when Kira became part of the war; a Coordinator fighting for the naturals. It had been unheard of and therefore it had been treated like treason. During all the fights I had fought with Kira and offered him a place to return to and a chance to stop fighting, he had always remained adamant that he had to protect his friends. That want turned into a driving force for Kira and my whole team found it impossible to beat him; even when we fought four against one.

And then after Nicol died and one of his friends perished as well, the fighting changed; it was not just fueled by the need to protect, but a burning rage to avenge the fallen. It was in that battle that I nearly killed my childhood friend, exploding my own Gundam in an attempt to destroy him. I had really thought him dead then. And I hated myself for it.

Cagalli and the people from Orb had been the ones to find me, and it was her that said the words that still ring in my mind; _"Someone is killed for killing another, then that guy is killed for killing him. How is that kind of twisted thinking ever going to beget peace."_

After Kira came back from the PLANTs with the Freedom, I finally took the chance and spoke to him. From there I began questioning my role in the war, and it eventually drove me to join Kira's side. But his side was no longer with the Earth Alliance, he had chosen his own side; a side devoted to ending the war on a peaceful note and not by exterminating one side or the other.

A deadly battle took place in the end, and we all nearly lost. Somehow we not only managed to survive but to also end the war and push the world into the peace it now has.

But now this. These people wanted the Ultimate Coordinator, and that had turned out to be Kira. He had given so much only months ago and now the world wanted more from him, it just wasn't right!

I remembered the tears I had shed with Cagalli after I thought I had killed Kira, and wondered if it would be the same this time; if the same deep, penetrating pain would fill my chest and threaten to suffocate me with the pressure.

When I arrived home I found Kira out on the upstairs balcony, looking out over the ocean. He seemed to be in one of those moods he fell into a lot lately; one where he seemed stuck in the past and no longer conscious of the present. The rain had lessened the further I got from Orb, now letting the sun once again grace the sky, which now shone on his face; illuminating it with a vibrant glow. One that was belied by the flat look in his violet eyes. I stood there for a while, watching him, trying to ingrain his face in these semi-peaceful moments. All too soon, that blank look turned into one of pain and fear and I knew the memories he was reliving were becoming too hard for him to bare. I walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, making him jump a little bit but effectively bringing him back.

"Sorry." I apologized.

"No, its fine… Thanks." He replied.

We fell into a comfortable silence as we watched the last of the sun disappear below the horizon. Not long after the darkness began to set in the sound of rain sounded on the roof, and I knew that the rain from Orb had finally made it here.

"Come on, let's go in." I said and headed towards the doorway. Inside we headed towards the lounge room and sat down on the sofa.

"Any luck today?" Kira asked after a while. I could tell that he was scared about the future, but as he always did he put on a brave face and attempted to go on as usual. I also hated having to tell him bad news.

"None." I sighed, "These guys seem to have disappeared from the area altogether."

"Oh well…" he said giving me an encouraging smile, but it didn't reach his eyes, "What about Cagalli?"

"Haven't heard from her today, but its most likely the same as last time." I answered feeling downcast.

"Listen Athrun; please don't worry too much. Things will work out in the end." To me the words sounded fake, nothing more than encouragement. But I was still glad for the attempt to cheer me up, even though I thought it should be me cheering him up.

"I will never stop searching." I murmured. I knew it was true because I would feel lost without him in my life and even the thought of those people getting him was like a hot iron being pressed against my heart.

"I know…" he replied just as quietly, "But I also believe in you."

And that was all I needed to hear in that moment as a smile broke upon my face.

Still more days passed without success, and before long it was the night before we were supposed to meet the people who had started this whole catastrophe. I couldn't help but feel that I had let Kira down, despite his constant dismissal of the subject. I was still out, being too stubborn to give up when there was no time left.

"Did you find anything?" I asked, feeling as though I was clutching at straws.

"Afraid not Athrun… Sorry." Dearka Elsman replied. Being an old team-mate and still in the ZAFT military I had contacted him to see if anything strange had happened at the PLANTs or the surrounding space.

"It's ok… Thanks." I said about to disconnect the com line, but Dearka's voice stopped me;

"Oh and Yzak said that if you need backup there, we can be there by sunrise."

Looking at the boy before me on the com screen I couldn't help but smile. He was my age, with dark skin and blond hair. He was always the fun loving one of the team and the exact opposite of his best friend; Yzak Joule. Yzak was temperamental and impulsive, but he was always there for his friends. The fact that he was offering to come down from the PLANTs and help Kira and I was a big thing; especially since Yzak was the one who hated Kira the most during the first war.

"Thanks… But no thanks, I have a feeling that these people might not appreciate outside help. And that could be bad for the kids." I replied thankfully.

"Yeah, ok then. Good luck Zala." With that we both disconnected.

It was strange being called by my old nickname again, it had only been a few months but it felt like a whole life time ago.

I sat back in my seat, looking out the front windshield at the lights of Orb. They looked so peaceful from here and belied the hustle and bustle of the city.

From here I was sure that I could see Cagalli's house; its lights shone bright just beyond the city area. Cagalli was stressed to say the least; she hadn't been able to find anything either and now she was very worried for her twin brother, even going as far as to blame herself.

Kira meanwhile has been very distant lately; often choosing to close himself away in his room. This had worried me at first, until I realized that he was distancing himself in an attempt to prepare us for the worst. At first this realization had hit me as hard as a jackhammer, as though he had been lying about his faith in us, but the more I thought about it the more I also realized that he was scared and just trying to protect us. As he always has.

After a while of just staring at the city lights I decided to head over to Cagalli's to see how she was.

When I pulled up most of the lights in the house were dark. This worried me; usually Cagalli would be up well past this time, and I doubted she would be seeking an early night tonight of all nights. I walked up to the front door and knocked loudly, making sure that someone would hear me from inside. I waited for a moment before opening the door and peeking inside. The usually well-lit foyer was dark and full of shadows. Something was wrong. I could feel it.

Normally the staff here would be there to answer the door at any hour of the night, and this area of the house was always kept well lit to cater for any occasion that may arise for the ruler of Orb.

Drawing my gun from its usual shoulder holster I carefully made my way through the door and into the foyer that had seemed so welcoming only days ago.

"Hello!" I called, my voice echoing hollowly around the room. When I got no answer my apprehension rose, something was _really _wrong.

My ZAFT training kicking in, I made my way toward the stairs; keeping my back near the wall where possible to avoid any unwanted attacks.

The top of the stairs yielded more shadowy areas, but as I made my way further down the hall a small line of light made itself known from under one of the doors. I breathed a sigh of relief at the idea of someone being here, but then more questions bubbled up from the reassesses of my mind; _If someone is here, why didn't they answer my calls? Are they hiding from me? If so, then why?_

Once again that bed feeling washed over me. Keeping my gun at the ready, I made my way towards the door, keeping my back toward the wall for protection.

I slowly edged the last few steps to the door and braced myself against the door frame in a way that would allow me to see most of the room the moment to door opened.

With deliberate slowness I edged the door open, straining my senses for the slightest hint of danger. Once the door was opened fully I carefully surveyed the room and subsequent disaster area before me; desks and chairs were over turned, vases that had once sat on the mantle to the left now lay in a thousand pieces on the floor, a glass cabinet that had held family heirlooms was completely smashed, and the glasses and plates were everywhere.

Something other than the total carnage tugged at the back of my mind. This was not the usual home invasion, it was something else and as I stared at the room before me I struggled to see what was written in the evidence.

Then I had it; although everything looked ransacked, as though someone had searched through it all, there was nothing of value missing. It was easy to see that all the items from the glass cabinet were worth a fair amount of money, yet it seemed as though all the items were there.

"This isn't good..." I mumbled to myself.

There was door on the right side of the room, and I figured that I should probably check it to see if it revealed anything else about the current situation.

I crossed the room slowly, being careful not to stand on anything. When I reached the door I slowly reached for the handle, I noticed that the door opened towards me and made a mental note to be cautious because of the disadvantage it would put me in if there was an enemy behind there.

One again I inched the door open; the room was dark beyond, limiting my sight into the area.

Deciding that if anyone was going to take a shot at me they would have already done it, I flung the door the rest of the way open and instantly had my gun up ready, eyes working to pierce the shadows of the room.

What happened after that was anything but what I expected.

The slight movement in the shadows came as a shock, and I cocked the gun on instinct, but before I had a chance to pull the trigger, something, or more accurately, someone moved.

The person came forward in a rush, but not how you would expect an attacking person to come at you. No. This person was _falling_.

The impact surprised me and I was sent sprawling backward with the person on top of me; glass shards and other objects digging painfully into my back upon impact and dragging a small cry of pain from my lips.

I rolled out from underneath the person, earning several more cuts along my arms, and turned to face them with gun at the ready. I was not prepared for the sight I saw;

It was one of the house staff, and he had three bullet holes in the middle of his back; blood staining the white shirt around it.

I couldn't quite quell the nauseousness that welled up within me at the sight and had to swallow hard a few times. I had seen dead people before, hell I had killed people before but it never made it any easier to bare. Recalling how stiff the body was when it landed on me, I knew this person had been dead a while.

I looked around the room again, now seeing each shadow and crevice as a potential hiding spot for danger. My heart beat a fast-tempo in my chest, filling my ears with the sound, my chest was heaving from the shock and attempt to keep oxygen levels balanced with my adrenaline filled blood.

I took a deep breath, attempting to calm myself once again.

Then another thought struck like a time bomb; _Cagalli!_

Spurred into motion by the single thought I raced from the room and down the hallways, now completely disregarding my own safety.

This mansion of a house had never seemed quite as large as it did now; the study, although destroyed, held no sign of Cagalli. I was beginning to panic now as I searched frantically for my friend; bursting through the doors to every room I passed. Most rooms were either untouched or a disaster area, and a few held more dead staff.

I was at wits end by the time I reached the last unchecked room. This time I slowed down as a realization dawned on me; if Cagalli wasn't in here, then there was major trouble.

I took a deep breath and reached for the handle, opening the door slowly. A pale light filtered through the room from the open window on the far side, the full moon taking up a large proportion on the outside view. At first my heart sunk as I scanned the large room finding no sign of Cagalli.

"Shit." I muttered to myself.

My heart nearly jumped out of my chest when a voice sounded from within the room;

"W-Who's there?" The voice was scared and thin sounding. It was also immediately recognizable.

"Cagalli?" I called, wanting to confirm my thoughts. "Its Athrun..."

"Athrun? Oh, god. Athrun... They... They."

"It's ok." I said with a calmness I didn't feel as I moved into the room. "It's all going to be alright."

Flicking the light switch and getting nothing, I resigned to the fact that I would have to make do with the moon light. As I moved further into the room, one of the shadows from the corner moved and Cagalli came into focus.

Even in the moon light she seemed pale; her eyes were wide with fear and her cheeks showed signs of tear trails, her hair was disheveled and her clothes rumpled.

I had never seen Cagalli look so... Fragile.

I moved over to her and brought her into a reassuring hug. She was shaking badly.

"It's all ok now." I told her softly.

"No!" She yelled pushing away. "They know! If I didn't tell them, so many would have died."

I felt my fear peak again, Cagalli had always been calm and level-headed in situations where lives were at stake, so for her to be this upset meant that something really bad had taken place.

"Who Cagalli? And what did you tell them?" I asked, still trying to act calm.

"Them. The ones who took the kids... They know Athrun... They know about Kira..." She said with obvious effort, shoulders shaking with renewed sobs. It took a while but her words slowly sunk in, and my blood ran cold.

"_They know about Kira..." _Those were the words I had been dreading for the last week. Words that scared me more than anything else ever had...

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><p><strong>Any good?<strong>


	5. Hunted

**Hmmm, hopefully this one is a bit more exciting :)...**

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 4: Hunted<strong>

_Kira Yamato POV_

It was quiet. Being home alone was strange, there was usually someone here to keep me company but they were all out on their own whims; Athrun was searching for the people who held the kids captive, Andrew and Murrue were working late in the city, and lacus wasn't due for another visit for quite some time.

Soon enough I was walking aimlessly around the house, looking at the familiar pictures and possessions displayed. I laughed softly to myself when I saw a photo of Athrun and I when we were kids; we were both smiling brightly at the camera from where we rested on the ground, grass covering our hair and clothes from rolling around.

It felt strange thinking back to a time when the war was nothing but threats looming on the horizon, when we were nothing more than kids who could find no wring in the world.

After I made a hot drink I made my way upstairs and into my room, where I decided I would attempt to read a novel to pass the time.

A while later I looked up from the novel, and glanced at the clock on the far wall; it was now 12:48pm.

Athrun was running unusually late tonight, but I soon disregarded the thought; he was most likely trying his hardest to find something, anything to help me.

The thought of what would happen tomorrow… No later today, sent tendrils of fear through my mind. The last week had been hard, especially since Athrun was making me stay indoors and '_out of danger' _but the way I saw it, they wouldn't know who I was until I told them anyway.

So I had been drifting around the house the entire time, occasionally going down to the beach for a break.

I yawned, and realized for the first time just how tired I was. I decided to wait for Athrun against my better judgment, and turned back to my novel. I was maybe half way through the book when my head started nodding and falling forward. Soon enough I was swimming in the comfortable blackness of sleep.

"_Athrun!" I yelled, raising my light sword. He grunted in response, the sound coming loud and clear over the com channel. Why did he always pursue me? Couldn't he see that I had to do this? I had to protect my friends._

_A proximity alarm sounded, distracting my attention from Athrun. One of the other Gundams was coming towards me, the pilots voice sounded over the com loudly._

"_Athrun, get outta there!" The voice was hard with determination. _

_The pilot of the mobile suit; the Blitz, raised a large pipe, broken to the point of piercing sharpness, and ran his Gundam straight at me. _

_I moved on reflex, not thought. My sword came down, I moved below the incoming pipe, and watched as the sword. _My_ sword. Cut into the middle of the Gundam, right where the cockpit was._

_Anguished cries of pain reached my ears over the com and I backed away, leaving my sword where it was._

_I stood back and watched in fear as the large machine before me sparked and shuddered. There were no more cries from the pilot, just two words that tore through my heart;_

"_Athrun… Run…"_

_Then the machine blew up. A large cloud of smoke and dust filled the air around where the machine had stood only seconds before, shrapnel and ash coming down around me._

_I had done it again. I had killed someone. And I hated it. Hated it so much…_

"_How could you do it Kira?" Athrun voice was full of anger and sadness, "You murdered Nicol!" The words came as no shock to me, but it still grated on my already abused emotions. I avoided another shot from Athrun, moving to the side._

"_Kira!" This new voice… It belonged to Tolle, he was coming this way in the Zero, obviously intending on joining the fight._

"_Toll no! Stay back!" I yelled, fear for my friend flooding my veins. _

_He ignored my pleas, instead sending a rocket towards Athrun. I already knew it wouldn't work. Athrun was too worked up and to deadly now, he dodged it easily, and threw his shield._

_It seemed to happen in slow motion; I watched as the shield arched through the sky, flying straight towards Tolle's ship. _

_It hit home._

_Tolle's ship exploded, thousands of tiny shards flying through the air…_

I woke with a start, jumping up from where I had fallen asleep in the arm chair in my room. Cold sweat clung to my body, my breathing was accelerated and my heart felt like a jackhammer in my chest. I looked down at the novel that was now lying on the floor.

Why did they always have to haunt me? Why couldn't I forget these memories?

I sat back down on the arm chair, running my hands down my face in an attempt to dispel the remnants of the dream. No not dream, I corrected, Nightmare.

I looked over at the clock; it was now past 2 in the morning.

"Where is Athrun?" I wondered aloud.

I large bang down stairs put my senses on high. Standing on shaky legs I moved towards the door to my room and looked out. The hall was still dark, as was the light for the stairs.

So that meant that Athrun was still out; one of the things he always done on impulse was turn the lights on for the stairs and hall.

I listened carefully for any further sound but heard nothing.

I still felt slightly off balance from the nightmare so I returned to my room, but my I stayed on high alert.

As I calmed down I noticed that the house seemed eerily quiet, and I felt the first stirrings of trouble in my stomach. I had learned to trust these feeling through the first war, so this time was no different.

I slid on some shoes and my usual jacket just in case and slowly made my way back into the hall.

Nothing had changed, so I slowly made my way towards the staircase.

As I edged my way towards the top I positioned myself so I could look down without being easily seen. At first I saw nothing out of the usual but just as I was about to turn away a small movement caught my eye. Focusing on the bottom of the stairs again I watched and waited, a moment later another shadow darted past the bottom of the stairs. This time I knew what it was; there were people down there, and by the way they were skulking around they probably weren't here to ask directions.

I saw one of the shadowy figures begin to ascend the stairs so I moved back out of the line of sight and turn to decide my next move.

My own room would be a bad idea; it was obvious that they would go there. Instead I moved quickly but quietly down towards the guest room at the end of the hall. The guest room door was usually left open to let the air circulate, I was very thankful for that as I slipped into the room and quietly eased the door closed.

The room held a king sized bed and a tall chest of draws. To the left of the room there were doors that led to a large walk in closet.

I knew the closet would be a bad idea for the simple fact that I would be boxing myself in. Instead I went and stood against the wall next to the door. If someone opened it they would hide me behind the door. If they closed it, it would reveal me but I would have the element of surprise.

I waited for what felt like forever, ignoring the urge to move around. The soft sounds of people moving outside the door put me on high alert once again. I stood there, face hard and body tense. Hoping that they would not look here.

It seems that someone was against me because a moment later, the door handle rattle slightly as someone began turning it from the outside.

I attempted to steady my breathing and stood flush against the wall, keeping the space my body took up to a minimum. Despite what I portrayed on the outside, I felt as though my heart would beat out of my chest, and I had to work to keep my mind from conjuring up all the worst case scenarios.

I watched as the door latch clicked and the door began to open slowly. They must have been expecting someone to jump at them with the amount of cautiousness they were using.

The door kept coming back until there was barely an inch left between it and me, causing me to subconsciously hold my breath and attempt to suck my body in.

I heard the soft footsteps enter the room, and move over to the walk in closet. The sounds faded after the door opened and I was glad I hadn't chosen that place to hide. When the footsteps came back they moved towards the bed, and soon enough I could see the person crouching to check under the bed. I stood stock still and waited, constantly expecting this person to look up and see me.

I was pretty sure they were looking for me because I was the only one home and how thorough they were being.

The person stood up and slowly scanned the room in a circle, their eyes passing right over my hiding spot before moving to leave the room.

When the door began closing I had to fight the urge to let out a sigh of relief. That had been to close for my liking. When the door was closed, I moved away from the wall and just stood there for a while, waiting for my heart to slow down.

I had to get in contact with Athrun. He had been trained for this sort of stuff, I hadn't. The battles and fights I had been in had been head on, and while not always fair they had held little or no deceit. This was not my battle ground.

A few moments later I stood at the door once more, listening intently for the slightest sounds. When nothing reached my ears I began easing the door open.

There was thankfully no one in the halls so I was able to make my way down to my room without incident. Once in there I began looking around for my phone, only then remembering that I had left it in the kitchen on the charger. Athrun had always wondered why I charged it in the kitchen and not my room, and now I cursed myself for it. I knew that wouldn't be the case after tonight.

I moved in to the hallway one more and headed for the stairs. The kitchen was very open and had three different entrances so I was going to have to find a way to get my phone quickly and get out. After that I would have to make my way down to the beach, where I could easily make a run for it if need be.

The bottom of the stairs was shrouded in shadows, making it an ideal place for an attacker to hide. Because of this I moved slowly down and was extremely thankful when no one jumped out at me. Once that distance was traversed I made my way towards the closest kitchen entrance and peeked in, seeing no one I decided that it was now or never to move.

I walked quickly through the kitchen to the bench that my phone sat on. I reached for it gratefully and puller the charger out. So far so good.

"Hey! He's here!" A male voice yelled behind me. Maybe not so good… I spun to look at a man dressed in black clothing and a balaclava. His statement only backed up my assumption of their target. Grabbing my phone tightly I began edging my way around the kitchen away from the man who matched my movements. I could hear the sounds of feet running on the floor above me and knew I had little time to react. I made a move for the furthest exit from the intruder, but he was fast and soon blocked my exit.

"Give up boy." He warned. His voice sounded familiar but I couldn't quite place where I had heard it. I shook my head in response and backed away slowly. There was no way I was just 'giving up'. I quickly assessed my options; there were not many, the three doorways now had at least one person standing there. My only other option was the window; it was large, so I could easily jump through but it was also quite close to the door which I had used to enter the kitchen. Knowing that I couldn't give my plan away I kept my eyes squarely on the man tracking me around the kitchen, letting him believe he was herding me to his friends in the door way. As soon as I was sure I was close enough I made my move; turning and diving through the window, sending showers of glass to the ground around me and earning a few cuts.

When I hit the ground I didn't stop; instead I followed through with a roll and came up running toward the beach before me.

I could hear the shouts from my pursuers as they shouted to one another. Ignoring them I brought my phone up and quickly dialed Athrun's number while traversing the uneven ground with familiar ease. I was near the edge of the beach by now, waiting for Athrun to pick up. _Hoping _he would pick up.

"Kira?" Athrun voice finally came through, he sounded worried and I wondered vaguely if he was ok.

"Where are you?" I demanded, letting the seriousness of the situation reach him.

"On my way. Kira listen get out of the house now, something happened and-"

"I already know." I interrupted, "listen Athrun, I need a quick getaway now!"

There was silence on the other end for a moment then I heard the telltale signs of his car accelerating.

"I'll be there in five. Where are you now?" I felt my heart sink slightly when he said how long he was going to be.

"Being chased down the beach…" I answered gravely. Athrun swore.

"Hang in there Kira, I'm-" Whatever he had been going to say was cut off when something large rammed into me from behind. I landed with a loud _humph, _my phone flying out of my hand and landing out of reach. I was roughly yanked to my feet and held in place by strong arms. I could feel the breath of the person on my neck. Whoever it was had to push themselves hard to catch me.

I struggled against my captors grasp, thrashing my weight from side to side attempting to loosen their grasp, but if anything it only got tighter.

"Let me go." I hissed.

"Yeah? In your dreams boy." It was the same man who had found me in the kitchen. "To think it was you all along… You should have spoken up at the mansion..." And quite suddenly I remembered where I had heard his voice before; he was the one who had come as an _informant_ to Cagalli's house.

Fear ran through my veins as I realized why they were here, but... How? How did they know?

I unconsciously stiffened when my fear spiked, this invoked a chuckle out of the man.

"I thought you might recognize me, you seem rather observant." He taunted. "I was rather surprised when you evaded my men for so long."

I re-doubled my efforts to escape, because in that moment I knew that I was in trouble. I could still feel the mans breath on my neck, so figuring that he was close I threw my head back. The back of my head collided with the mans face hard; a sickening _crunch_ issuing from what was most likely his nose.

His grip loosened slightly, but that was all I needed; I gave my all into one large yank against his hold. He must have still been disorientated because I managed to break free.

A small sense of triumph ran through me as I got away, quickly continuing down the beach.

That sense of triumph was smashed when I saw what awaited me further up the beach; a line of people, all dressed in the same black as those that broke into my house, were standing in a line from the shore, up into the tree line. This was not good.

I came skidding to a stop roughly 30 meters from the line and quickly scanned for an escape.

None came to mind. _Damn_.

"As I told you before boy; Give up! You can't run forever." I spun around to see that man slowly jogging up the beach. His hand was covering his nose, and in the moon light I was sure that I could see lines of blood. His voice sounded nasally, and very pissed off.

I adapted a fighting stance; I was no fan of conflict but there was no way I would give up either.

"No." I replied calmly.

"Fine. Then we do this the hard way!" The man replied, leaping at me with surprising speed. I remembered my initial reaction to seeing this guy in the mansion then; _He gave off the very air of calm and confident. _In other words, this guy knew what he was doing.

I reacted on instinct and avoided his attack, but he followed through with a swift kick aimed at my legs. It took me by surprise and I soon found myself looking up at the stars. Seeing his fist coming for my face I quickly rolled out of the way. He missed me by inches, hitting the sand with a soft _thwump. _I quickly got myself to my feet and turned to face him again; he quickly followed through with another bone-breaker punch aimed for my gut, I side stepped it and this time I followed up with a hit of my own; My foot flew out and smacked into the back of the mans leg, sending him onto one knee. I couldn't wait for him to get up so I sent another quick kick aimed at his upper back. I found my mark and the man grunted in pain. He was now on his hands and knees.

I hated the look of a man like that but his guy was to dangerous to leave standing. With a swift knee to the side of the head the man was put out cold.

I stood back panting. The whole fight had seemed to go on for ages, but had only taken a few minutes if that. I was glad that I had been able to win this one, now all I had to do was get out of here.

Looking down at the line of men, I noticed that they were further away than before, even though I hadn't moved to much.

This both confused and worried me.

I was about to head in the opposite direction, planing to head back towards the house and double around to the highway and hopefully meet Athrun.

That was when a small, round object landed in the sand next to me; I barely had a second to register its arrival when it seemed to open up and the hiss of gas erupted from within.

The next breath I took was full of the foul gas, and not 20 seconds later I could feel my head growing cloudy.

The world around me spun precariously; and I fell, hitting the sand on my back. The stars above me seemed to spin in several different directions at the same time, but a blackness was encroaching on my vision.

I only had one coherent thought left before everything went black;

_Athrun..._

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><p><strong>Well that's it for now, this is all I wrote for school so far. I'm not sure if I should continue or not, so I will leave that up to who ever wants to read this.<strong>

**So... To continue? Or Not to continue?**

**Please tell me what you think...**


	6. Panic

**I'm back. It has been awhile, but I decided to continue with the story; although my other story 'Conflicted' will be my priority. The lengths of these chapters are solely based on what I feel is enough so some may be quite short while others are longer. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask.**

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><p><span><strong>Chapter 5: Panic<strong>

_Athrun Zala POV_

The rest of the drive to the mansion seemed to take an eternity, but when I finally got there things speed up considerably. I had barely put the bakes on before I leapt from the car and made my way toward the path to the beach. The call from Kira had been abruptly disconnected and that worried me; he could hold his own in a fight but that never stopped me from worrying.

If they were as desperate to get Kira as they seemed it was unlikely that they would come in a small force, especially if what Cagalli said was true and they knew that Kira was the Ultimate Coordinator.

I made it to the beach in record time and looked around; there were clear trails in the sand, the footprints of well more than a few people. They were all headed up the beach, so I took off following them.

They traveled quite far before a large patch of disturbed sand caught my eye. The moonlight reflected off the sand in a way that revealed all the irregular marks in the smooth sand.

I moved closer to the disturbed area and crouched to have a closer look; from what I could tell it seemed as though a fight had taken place. There was a deeper rut not far from the main area, so it seemed as though someone quite heavy had fallen and lain there for a time. Kira was light weight so I had hope that he had been the victor of this fight.

My eyes scanned the surrounding area, looking for anymore tell-tale signs for what had transpired. As I moved my head around a small gleam caught my eye off the the left.

Hoping that it would be something that would help me to understand what had happened, I moved over towards it.

When I was close enough the object came into a clearer focus and I recognized the shape.

It was Kira's phone.

When I picked it up it showed no signs of damage other than sand infiltration, so I placed it in my pocket for safe keeping.

I once again turned my eyes to the sand, and decided to keep walking up the beach. My heart sank when I followed the tracks further; this time following smoother tracks that led me to believe someone was dragged.

A few more meters up the beach and I began recognizing the signs of the wind a ships thrusters give off whilst hovering. And the tracks soon disappeared.

This was not good.

They wouldn't have left if they hadn't got what they had come for.

And they had come for Kira.

I brought my hands up to my head, pulling my hair back and attempted to quell the rising fear in my chest.

"Damn it!" I swore.

I lost my fight with my panic and I was soon kicking up sand and yelling to the cold hard stars above.

"Why! Why him? Why does Kira always have to fight and be dragged into things like this!" I screamed to the empty beach.

I should have been here quicker! I should have stayed with him!

I was distracted from my rampage when I took another kick at the sand and my foot meet with a hard round object. Leaning down to get a closer look I saw a small metal ball, no bigger than the palm of my hand. In my current state of mind it took me a moment to recognize it but once it did, I was able to figure out what had happened.

I had trained with such objects; gas bombs. Some would have poison within them, others simple tear gas. But the most effective for this type of situation, and the obvious type that had been used was a knockout gas.

I had been wondering what had happened after the fight took place; because if Kira was the winner then surely he would have had a good chance of escape. But now with the gas that changed things. Kira wasn't used to fighting in situations where things like gas and poisons could get to him; the Gundam's are air-tight. Sure we had gone over things like this but Kira wouldn't have had a chance to react to something like this.

If anything that made me even more infuriated. They couldn't even give him a fighting chance?

After another rant or two I made my way back to the mansion to see what the damage was and whether or not I could find any clues as to where they would have taken Kira.

I walked around to the front door first, deciding that that would be the most likely place they would have entered.

Sure enough the front door wasn't latched, and the key hole showed signs of tampering. With a sigh I pushed the door inwards and walked in. It was dark inside; no lights. Kira always left the front light on if someone wasn't home on time, so that meant that the infiltrators had switched the light off when they entered.

Walking along the hallway, it could have been easy to forget that nothing had happened; everything was in its place and nothing had been moved.

Upstairs there were only minimal signs that there had been people inside; a door left open were it should have been closed, bed sheets crumpled where they had used the bed to support them as they checked under the beds, and a few clothes rumpled or fallen off in closets.

In Kira's room the bed was still made and the lamp was on; so Kira had been awake when they came. There was a discarded novel next to his chair and his usual jacket and a pair of shoes were missing. This told me that he had realized the threat before it reached him but to late to find a method of contact.

I had an idea that Kira hadn't had his phone in here with him when it started because by the time he had gotten in contact with me he was already on the beach, that meant that it would have been on charge in the kitchen.

I made my way back down the stairs and towards said kitchen. A cool breeze meet me before I got there. When I came through one of the three entrances to the kitchen I found the reason why; the main window – a large affair that would normally let in plenty of light or the sea breeze- was smashed.

The lack of glass on the inside meant that it had been smashed from the outside.

I guesses that it had been in the kitchen that Kira had been found, and from there he had been cornered and had to jump from the window to get free.

Back outside I was studying the glass and found a few shards with small amounts of blood on them, that left me hoping that Kira hadn't been to badly hurt trying to escape, but then again, if it was bad there probably would have been more blood.

With a sigh I lent back against the side of the house. Right now I felt like shit. I was worried and panicked over Kira. I had no idea who these people actually were and exactly what they wanted.

I sat there for ages, ignoring my own shivering from the cold night air. Well by this time it was closer to morning than night and I was sure that dawn wasn't far away.

I was alerted by the sounds of approaching footsteps, but I did nothing to react. I probably couldn't if I wanted to.

"Athrun?" A voice came through the darkness, it was the concerned voice of Murrue Ramius. When I didn't answer she came over, her urgency relayed with the speed of her step.

"Athrun? What happened? Are you ok?" She asked, quickly going into soldier mode.

I looked at her, and she visibly flinched from the look in my face. I was making no attempt to hide how I felt right now. Kira was gone and I had no clue how to help him.

"Athrun... Where is Kira?" She asked, this time tentatively. She knew me well enough to know that there were few things that could leave me like this.

At the sound of Kira's name tears threatened to spill over. I tried to talk but found that my throat felt constricted and dry.

"H-He's..." I found it even harder to force the next word from my mouth but I managed after a long period of silence, "Gone..." I said as the tears finally spilled over.

Now it was Murrue's turn to look panicked and confused. But right now I was welcoming a darkness that edged its way over my sight and through my mind. Soon enough I was out cold and in the arms of a friend. Something that Kira didn't have...

* * *

><p><strong>A more emotional chapter, which I hope was ok. So yeah, please feel free to ask questions or point out some thing that I may have gotten wrong. <strong> 


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